1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to the field of manufacturing conical or cylindrical shaped structures. In particular the present invention is related to stabilizing a can used in the construction of cylindrical or conical shaped structures during the can rounding process.
2. Description of the Related Technology
In light of the increased cost of energy for traditional non-renewable energy sources people have begun to take more of an interest in renewable energy sources. One type of renewable energy sources is wind energy and its popularity is evidenced by the increasing number of wind towers that dot the landscape.
In the construction of wind towers, conical or cylindrical shaped “cans,” are welded together in order to form the towers. FIGS. 1(a) and 1(b) show cylindrical can 10a and conical can 11a which are illustrative of cans used in the manufacture of wind towers. Cans may be constructed of any material and are typically made of metal in the construction process described below. Dimensions for cans used in this type of manufacture may range between 7 to 20 feet.
In the wind tower manufacturing industry, the current method of fabrication and welding has no effective way of butting the cans up to one another in a concentric manner. When welding cans using standard methods may be supported at their base and two cans are placed in abutment and welded together. When the cans are welded together in this fashion frequently an imperfect weld is formed. This results in inefficiencies in the field and reduces the number of wind towers that can be effectively manufactured.
Therefore there is a need in the field to provide a method and system for uniformly rounding a can in order to create an efficient weld when forming a conical or cylindrical shaped structure.